U.S. double standard in dealing with riots

Supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump gather near the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., the United States, Jan. 6, 2021. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

As of January 24, more than 300 Americans have been arrested and charged in connection with the Capitol riot on Jan. 6 when pro-Trump protesters stormed the building of the U.S. Congress in an attempt to block the certification of Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election.

The Capitol mob attack is unprecedented in the U.S. history as the country often touts itself as a land of law and order.

The “insurrection” shook the nation, drawing rare bipartisan condemnation. Newly sworn-in U.S. president Joe Biden denounced it as an assault on the nation's law and democracy. "They weren't protesters. Don't dare call them protesters. They were riotous mobs, insurrectionists, domestic terrorists," Biden said in the press conference.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, whose office was ransacked, accused the rioters of choosing their "whiteness over democracy" and pushed Trump's second impeachment on a charge of "incitement to insurrection.”

Even Trump's closest allies, such as Ted Cruz, Kellyanne Conway, and Mike Pence, disavowed the mayhem at the U.S. Capitol. "Peaceful protest is the right of the every American, but this attack on our Capitol will not be tolerated, and those involved will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," Mike Pence, the former vice-president, tweeted.

Federal law enforcement officials in the U.S. have established a nationwide dragnet, including web page tracking, to hold those who participated in the riots accountable.

"The rights of freedom of speech and assembly do not give anyone the right to resort to violence, sedition and insurrection," wrote the Military Joint Chiefs of Staff, a statement to show their support and defend the U.S. Constitutional Law.

(Photos from Xinhua, Global Times)

Similar riot happened in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in 2019 when a gang of people stormed the Legislative Council Complex, scrawling graffiti, robbing items, damaging offices, and inciting violence in Hong Kong elsewhere.

Riot mobs in Hong Kong are much "luckier" than those participating in the Capitol siege. Turning blind eyes to the escalating violence, some western politicians and media portrayed the mobs as "pro-democracy fighters.”

Nancy Pelosi, who broke down in tears as she branded the Capitol riot an "assault on our democracy," called the turmoil in Hong Kong "a beautiful sight to behold."

What happened in Hong Kong is akin to the Capitol Hill's assaulting that participants in both riots have violated the law and posed a dangerous threat to the constitutional order. How come one be praised as a "pro-democracy protest" and one be defined as insurrection?

Apparently, the American version of respecting the law only is limited within its territory. Instead of condemning the violence that disrupts life and threatens the security of Hong Kong citizens, U.S. politicians stood with so-called "peaceful protestors," preventing China from stopping the riots and conduct its constitutional rights.

Cracking down domestically and inciting outside is the U.S. attitude on domestic and international riots, which epitomizes the country’s double standard and hypocrisy.

Mohamad Safa, a Lebanese diplomat and also Permanent Representative to the United Nations, made his comment on Twitter after the U.S. Capitol riot, saying that "If the United States saw what the United States is doing in the United States, the United States would invade the United States to liberate the United States from the tyranny of the United States."

The United State’s deed in Hong Kong corroborated Mohamad's word. When China introduced the National Security Law to restore peace and stability in Hong Kong, the U.S. released a raft of measures, interfering with China’s domestic affairs.

Under the excuse of protecting “Hong Kong autonomy,” the U.S. authorities approved the notorious Hong Kong Autonomy Act, imposing sanctions on officials, businesses, and individuals who contribute to crackdowns on the riots and bring peace to the Hong Kong citizens.

Even though most Hong Kong citizens welcomed the National Security Law that would bring peace and prosperity to Hong Kong, Nancy Pelosi slandered it as "brutal law" that would "frighten, intimidate and suppress those peacefully seeking freedom."

Maybe after the U.S. Capitol riot, Nancy Pelosi would understand the feeling of Hong Kong citizens at that time.

It is hoped that one day the U.S. will respect other countries' efforts to restore law and order, just like what they do in their own country.